sean scully

We’re still flying by on September’s openings, but by the time the weekend rolls around, we’re gonna see some signs of new art life. Throughout the week, there’s a heckuva bunch of artist talks and lectures. We just might jump out of our panda costumes to attend a few. By the time the weekend rolls around though, we’ll have some hard choices to make. Pandacam re-enactments or Mike Kelley’s behemoth retrospective at PS1, Rollin Leonard’s solo show of cut up digital bodies, or Robert Longo’s Patsy Cline cover band reuniting at The Kitchen. Only time will tell whether the government’s shutdown has greater effects on the art world than anyone could have predicted.

Even though the hum around Armory week seems subdued this year, visiting half-a-dozen-plus art fairs can in a few days’ time can feel like a week on a Eurail pass. Naive outsiders are treated harshly, the food is unfamiliar and overpriced, and you spend a lot of time snooping around taking pictures. It’s useful to have an index that you can depend on to guide you towards the things that are worth seeing and away from the things that aren’t. A guidebook if you will. Here’s ours.